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Friday, 12 January 2018

{RECIPE} Sardine and Cheese Dog Treats (Naturally Pink!)

With the chaos and fun of Christmas behind us, it's time for us to start our Valentine's posts, yay! Feel the love, furfriends! Nothing says love to our boys quite like something super stinky and delicious, and fishy treats are particularly irresistible. Sardine purees to a not-so-appetising greige colour, so these treats get an all-natural colour boost from beetroot powder. Delicious and nutritious!

{RECIPE} Sardine and Cheese Dog Treats (Naturally Pink!)

1 standard tin of water packed sardines*

1 egg

1/4 cup of low sodium stock or water

1 tsp beetroot powder (optional for colour)

1 tbsp dried parsley (optional)

1 tbsp dog safe dried Italian herbs (optional)

2 tbsp ground flax (optional)

Approximately 1 cup of brown rice flour or equivalent substitute

Sprinkle of finely grated cheese (optional)

Tip: I've used a few different brands of water-packed sardines for various treats and the tins are similar size/volume but can vary a little in net weight (~100-125g). The affect on my doughs has been pretty negligible, and is easily compensated for with slight flour/water adjustments if your treat dough consistency needs a tweak for workability.

Preheat over to 180C. Empty the sardines and any packing water in the into into a food processor and puree until smooth. If you need a little liquid to help, you can add the stock and/or egg to the food processor. Pour into a mixing bowl and combine with the egg, stock, beetroot powder, herbs, and flax. Incrementally add flour until the dough has a nice workable play-dough like consistency. Flour quantity will depending your individual ingredients and options, so work incrementally. If it isn't firm enough, add a touch more flour. If your mixture is looking a bit dry, you can add a little bit of additional water/stock to adjust. Knead through the cheese to thoroughly distribute. Rest dough (optional). Roll, cut, place on a prepared baking tray, and bake for approximately 10 minutes. Cooking time will vary with size and thickness, so keep an eye on the oven. Cool before storage and serving.

Tips and Tricks:

I used chicken stock for these treats. My go to stock for dog treats is simple unseasoned broth saved from preparing homemade food. It can be VERY hard to source ready-made unsalted and unseasoned stock, and it's super easy to make your own (and budget friendly too!).

The treats can be broken for smaller dogs, or made bigger/smaller - just keep an eye on your cooking time - the smaller the cookie, the shorter the baking time.

For a crunchier treat, you can let baked treats sit a while in the cooling oven before removing to get a little crispier or pop the baked treats into a dehydrator. I dehydrated mine and the dogs were sooooo excited sniffing around the kitchen with the fishy teat smell. Me, not so much. Haha!

These treats can be frozen for longer storage.

Hungry for more tasty treats? See all of our recipes here. Remember, treats are for spoiling your pup in moderation. Some dogs have special dietary requirements and/or food allergies/intolerances. If you are ever in doubt or have questions about your dog's diet and health, have a chat with your vet.

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